Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has stated Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi should step down “for the sake of the country’s future”.
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan is among the leaders that has agreed that attacks against civilians must stop and that the Libyan leader must step down and quit from Libya permanently so there can be a lasting solution that coincides with the will of the Libyan people
That is a distinct change in Turkish policy towards Libya, with Prime Minister Erdogan previously having taken a more arbitratory approach.
Erdogan Gadaffi must quit
Erdogan previously avoided sharpening his tone against Gaddafi and did not directly call on the Libyan leader to step down in the hope that Turkey could secure a possible cease-fire between the Libyan groups engaged in hostilities. Erdogan has resisted pressurising Col Gaddafi to quit previously, instead trying to mediate. Turkey also refused to participate in the military phase of NATO’s operation against forces loyal to Gaddafi but pledged to contribute to an arms embargo and to establishing a humanitarian corridor to help wounded Libyans.
Turkish Prime Minister : Libya should determine its own fate
In a speech yesterday Erdogan said Gaddafi had ignored calls for change in Libya and preferred “bloodshed” than listening to his Libyan people. Prime Minister Erdogan Erdogan said the Libyan leader had disregarded the wishes of his people by using force against them.
“One cannot build future, liberty, stability, peace and justice on blood. Therefore the Libyan leader should immediately pull out from Libya and step down for himself and for the future of the country,” he said.
He also stated Turkey would do all it could afford to make sure the people of Libya take the principal role in establishing a more democratic system, and would talk to the anti-Gaddafi minded Libyan National Transitional Council.
“The people of Libya should determine their future in solidarity and unity, it is a priority for us. Hence, we will stay in touch with National Transitional Council to ensure that the elements in our road map can be carried out.
Turkey has temporarily closed its Tripoli embassy and withdrawn its employees, although it is keeping an embassy open in rebel-held Benghazi.
Most other Western governments evacuated staff from the country when international forces began air strikes against Libya in March, under a UN mandate to protect civilians.
Turkey Libya Cooperation in the past
For the past decade, Turkey and Libya have developed a close partnership.
Turkish exports to Libya are $2bn a year, Turkish companies had contracts worth billions more inside the country, and 25,000 Turkish citizens worked there.
So Turkey tried to remain on good terms with Moammar Gaddafi at first, even as it joined the Nato-led alliance attacking his forces. That effort is now at an end.
Gaddafi has lost his last significant friend in the international community. His isolation is complete; Turkey will no longer champion the idea of a peace agreement with the opposition.
Recep Tayyip Erdogan has found it hard to show in the Arab Spring with his usual populist zeal.
Turkish Prime Minister urged Egypt’s President Mubarak to resign before most other leaders, but took a different approach with Libyan leader Gaddafi, at one point describing Nato intervention as absurd.
But Erdogan is still widely admired in the region, and his call now for Moammar Gaddafi to leave will have an influence.
